"Equipping Today's Generation with the Gospel of the Kingdom to Make Disciples of all Nations"

Luke 1:17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

Know God Personally

1. God loves you and created you to know Him personally.

(references contained on this Home Page are linked to the actual
verses from the Bible, and should be read in context wherever possible.)

God's Love

"God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life" (John
3:16).

God's Plan

"Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent" (John 17:3, NIV). What prevents
us from knowing God personally?

2. Man is sinful and separated from God, so we cannot know Him personally or experience His love.

Man is Sinful

"All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).
Man was created to have fellowship with God; but, because of his own
stubborn self-will, he chose to go his own independent way and
fellowship with God was broken. This self-will, characterized by an
attitude of active rebellion or passive indifference, is an evidence of
what the Bible calls sin.

Man is Separated

"The wages of sin is death" [spiritual separation from God] (Romans
6:23). "...(Those) who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our
Lord Jesus...will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out
from the presence of the Lord..." (2 Thessalonians 1:8,9)

This diagram illustrates that God is holy and man is sinful. A great
gulf separates the two. The arrows illustrate that man is continually
trying to reach God and establish the personal relationship with Him
through his own efforts, such as a good life, philosophy, or religion -
but he inevitably fails. The third principle explains the only way to
bridge this gulf...

3.Jesus Christ is God's only provision for man's sin. Through Him alone we can know God personally and experience God's love.

He Died in Our Place

"God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).

He Rose From the Dead

"Christ died for our sins...He was buried...He was raised on the
third day according to the Scriptures...He appeared to Peter, then to
the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred..." (1
Corinthians 15:3-6).

He is the Only Way to God

"Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me'" (John 14:6).

This diagram illustrates that God has bridged the gulf that separates
us from Him by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross in
our place to pay the penalty for our sins.

It is not enough just to know these truths...

4. We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know God personally and experience His love.

We Must Receive Christ

"As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become
children of God, even to those who believe in His name" (John 1:12)

We Receive Christ Through Faith

"By grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works that no one
should boast" (Ephesians 2:8,9). When We Receive Christ, We Experience a
New Birth (Read John 3:1-8.)

We Receive Christ by Personal Invitation

[Christ speaking] "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one
hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him" (Revelation
3:20). Receiving Christ involves turning to God from self (repentance) and
trusting Christ to come into our lives to forgive us of our sins and to
make us what He wants us to be. Just to agree intellectually that Jesus
Christ is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for our sins is
not enough. Nor is it enough to have an emotional experience. We receive
Jesus Christ by faith, as an act of our will.

These two circles represent two kinds of lives:

Which circle best respresents your life? Which circle would you like to have represent your life?

The following explains how you can receive Christ:

You Can Receive Christ Right Now by Faith Through Prayer

(Prayer is talking with God) God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is
with the attitude of your heart. The following is a suggested prayer:

"Lord Jesus, I want to
know You personally. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I
open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank
You for forgiving me of my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control
of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to
be."

How to Know That Christ Is in Your Life

Did you receive Christ into your life? According to His promise in
Revelation 3:20, where is Christ right now in relation to you? Christ
said that He would come into your life and be your friend so you can
know Him personally. Would He mislead you? On what authority do you know
that God has answered your prayer? (The trustworthiness of God Himself
and His Word.)

The Bible Promises Eternal Life to All Who Receive Christ

"The witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this
life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not
have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written
to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may
know that you have eternal life" (1 John 5:11-13). Thank God often that Christ is in your life and that He will never
leave you (Hebrews 13:5). You can know on the basis of His promise that
Christ lives in you and that you have eternal life from the very moment
you invite Him in. He will not deceive you.

An important reminder...

Do Not Depend on Feelings

The promise of God's Word, the Bible - not our feelings - is our
authority. The Christian lives by faith (trust) in the trustworthiness
of God Himself and His Word. This train diagram illustrates the relationship among fact (God and
His Word), faith (our trust in God and His Word), and feeling (the
result of our faith and obedience) (John 14:21).

The train will run with or without the caboose. However, it would be
useless to attempt to pull the train by the caboose. In the same way, we
as Christians do not depend on feelings or emotions, but we place our
faith (trust) in the trustworthiness of God and the promises of His
Word.

Now You Have Entered Into a Personal Relationship With Christ

The moment you received Christ by faith, as an act of your will, many things happened, including the following: 1. Christ came into your life (Revelation 3:20 and Colossians 1:27). 2. Your sins were forgiven (Colossians 1:14). 3. You became a child of God (John 1:12). 4. You received eternal life (John 5:24). 5. You began the great adventure for which God created you (John 10:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17 and 1 Thessalonians 5:18).Can you think of anything more wonderful that could happen to you
than entering into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? Would you
like to thank God in prayer right now for what He has done for you? By thanking God, you demonstrate your faith. To enjoy your new relationship with God...

Suggestions For Christian Growth

Spiritual growth results from trusting Jesus Christ. "The righteous
man shall live by faith" (Galatians 3:11). A life of faith will enable
you to trust God increasingly with every detail of your life, and to
practice the following:

G Go to God in prayer daily (John 15:7).

R Read God's Word daily (Acts 17:11) - begin with the Gospel of John.

O Obey God moment by moment (John 14:21).

W Witness for Christ by your life and words (Matthew 4:19; John 15:8).

T Trust God for every detail of your life (1 Peter 5:7).

H Holy Spirit - Allow Him to control and empower your daily life and witness (Galatians 5:16,17; Acts 1:8).

The Importance of Baptism

The view of most evangelical Christian scholars is that salvation is
by grace through faith alone. This is especially indicated by Ephesians
2:8-9, John 3:16, 1 John 5:1. It is important to understand that baptism
is a result of salvation, not a cause. There are different baptism methods. They may include the sprinkling
of water over the head of the professing believer or the total immersion
of the person under water (Greek: "Baptismo" = to immerse). However,
the procedure is not as important as the individual's understanding and
motivation to seek baptism.Some cite Mark 16:16 as their proof text that baptism is necessary
for salvation, but they only quote the first half of the verse and
typically leave out the second half, which indicates the necessity of
belief as being the prerequisite to the salvation issue. The way to resolve most problems pertaining to the issue of baptism
is to look at the whole of Scripture. When we do, we find that there is
absolutely nothing we can do as humans to earn salvation. Romans 6:23
tells us that salvation is a "free gift." Free means that there is
nothing we can do to deserve it. On the other hand, baptism is something
we choose to do. If baptism or any other human work or activity (such
as going to church regularly, going on a pilgrimage or visiting a "holy
site") contributed to our salvation, we could boast that we did
something and contributed to our salvation. However, Scripture says that
no one should boast before God Ephesians 2:8-9 . We come to Christ though grace by faith, and our public baptism
brings glory and honor to God. Baptism is an act of obedience, not to
obtain salvation, but because of it -- because we love Him and want to
obey Him. The motivation to pursue baptism should originate from a
desire to show to the world an outward demonstration of the person's
decision as well as the inward work the Holy Spirit has already begun in
us. An unsaved person would not likely want to be baptized, because he
would not have the Holy Spirit indwelling him to prompt his desire to
follow Christ in obedience (unless a sect or cult group has erroneously
taught him or her otherwise.) The fact that one even wants to be
baptized (being assured that only faith alone in Jesus Christ saves) is
evidence that the Holy Spirit already indwells that person, a result of
being born of the Spirit by faith alone.In the book of Acts, baptism is typically the outward response to
coming to faith. It was seen as part of a process which includes: 1)
hearing (or reading about) the gospel, 2) being convicted and led by the
Holy Spirit to confess one's sins (Greek: "Homologeo" = to agree with,
to speak the same), 3) coming to faith in Jesus Christ as Savior, 4)
beginning the progress of growth (which includes repenting from known
sin), 5) joining a group of believers or church fellowship, and 6) being
baptized. The last two parts are where there are different opinions
among believers or churches. Where some churches differ with what has been stated above chiefly
centers on whether a person is saved if they have not been baptized (or
if they have not been baptized the "right" way). In our understanding a
person is saved when they put their faith in Christ. Of course, we all
want them to join a church which exalts Christ and be baptized.

Fellowship In a Good Church

God's Word admonishes us not to forsake "the assembling of ourselves
together..." (Hebrews 10:25). Several logs burn brightly together; but
put one aside on the cold hearth and the fire goes out. So it is with
your relationship with other Christians. If you do not belong to a
church, do not wait to be invited. Take the initiative; call the pastor
of a nearby church where Christ is honored and His Word is preached.
Start this week, and make plans to attend regularly.Please feel free to contact use about your decision to follow Jesus or with any questions you might have. We will help you to the best of our ability to live a strong Christian life and a life blessed by God. -Pastor Steve-

Elijah's Cry Blog

The Promised Outpouring Begins
-
Back on January 1, 2012 New Years Day in a church on Bohol Island the
Spirit prophesied that the fire of God was coming to the Philippines.
*New Years Day ...

5 years ago

Radio-U

Youth Focused Radio Station from Columbus, Ohio, USA

Elijah Streams

Praise, Worship & Soaking i-Radio Station

YOUNG ADULT LIFE COACHING

Coasching with Coach Steve O'Brien is fun, challenging, life changing and possibly the cheapest prices online. I understand that college students and most young adult are on a very tigth budget I I have made it very affordable to get powerful life changing results.

YOUNG ADULT MENTORING GROUP

H.S., College & Pro Athletes, Students, Young Business Men & Women and Future Global Leaders

Oval Bible College

Affordable Bible College Degrees. Do you desire to obtain a quality biblical education without depleting your savings? Do you desire a greater knowledge and a deeper understanding of God's word? You are at the right school.

Destiny Now! with Bishop Howard L. Bass

Check out this right now word that will rock your world!!

Mentoring Winners

An amazing book full of what God desires to do today with this generation

Lance Learning-Dr. Lance Wallnau

I am receiving revelation from this man's teachings on the Kingdom of God, coming into your destiny and the 7 Mountain Strategy that are radically changing my thinking, life and ministry

Global Priority Solutions provides a structured approach while establishing character as a central focus in yourself or organization. Our 40 character values create an atmosphere for personal growth and development as each person in the roundtable focuses on ethical character

Healing Streams USA

This ministry has a 24 lesson course to bring healing to your life from the past and hurts with deep but simple understanding of God's word that I have yet to see one to compare it to

Financial Counseling

This is and amazing ministry I get news letters containing great widsom on finances

FREE Discipleship Training

I used this School As a part of my Discipleship School of Ministry in the Philippines with great results.

New Life Coaching Inc.

The highly recommended Christian Life Coaching Ministry & School Pastor Steve graduated from

PRAYER, HEALING and PROPHETIC MINISTRY with Pastor Steve

THIS IS NOT A COUNSELING OR THERAPY MINISTRY All sessions last up to 30 minutes by phone or Skype video.

Monthly e-News Brief from When in the Philippines October 2011- April 2012

Feedjit

Elijah's Cry - Amazon aStore

Messages from 2011

Messages from 2012

About Me

Steve O’Brien is an ordained minister,a successful coach, trainer, mentor and motivational speaker with certifications as a chaplain, strength coach and life coach. He has taught children, teens and young adults in the US, Canada, Dominican Republic, Africa and the Philippines, fed hungry children and the poor, is a world traveler and philanthropist. He has been coaching, training and mentoring people of all ages since 1978 with his greatest focus towards teens and young adults. Steve blends his back ground as mentor and coach for over 30 years, a fitness center owner and personal trainer for 20 years with his leadership of two nonprofit organizations that train leaders and workers and has helped the under privileged in the world for over two decades. It is through all this and his over 55 years of life’s wisdom that enable him to prepare the younger generations to live life, lead others and move up to the pinnacle of success in life, family and career.